A Closed Hand, Full of Friends
by BedknobsAndBroomsticks
Summary: Angelina Johnson, Katie Bell, and Alicia Spinnet have always had each other's backs, especially when it comes to boys. Living together in London, can they sort out their disastrous love lives and remain friends in the process? Delicious drama ensues. Primarily AJ/FW, AS/GW, and KB/OW with other pairings thrown in. AU Post-Hogwarts. Smut ahead.
1. Chapter One

_In the recitations of the parish poets,  
_ _In the buildings, in the burrows, in the Loch Tay boats  
_ _I will find my means to an end  
_ _With an open-hearted hope and a close hand, full of friends  
_ _-Foy Vance, "Closed Hand Full of Friends"_

Chapter One

Music blared across the crowded dancefloor. Nothing but colored, strobing lights illuminated the packed bodies that all moved in time to the heavy beat. Faces blurred together in the flashes and heat. Angelina's black braids cascaded down her nearly bare back, jumping each time she tossed her head. Sweat glistened across her forehead as people brushed against her and firewhiskey coursed through her veins.

"Ange!" Katie's flushed face appeared out of the crowd, long blonde hair mussed and tousled. "I need you to help me." She swayed, slopping some of her beer onto the floor. "Dean is here and he won't leave me alone. He thinks he's gonna get lucky," she giggled.

"You're in a right state," Angelina laughed, hugging her friend. "Do you want to go?"

"I'm hungry," Katie giggled again.

"That's a yes, then. Come on, let's go find the lovebirds." Angelina grabbed Katie's hand and pulled her through the crowd. Weaving in and out of flailing limbs and sloppy kisses, they approached the bar where Alicia Spinnet and George Weasley stood in heated conversation.

"Don't have too much fun, you two," Katie slurred, poking George's shoulder. The joke only earned her disparaging looks from the couple.

"She's drunk as fuck," Angelina laughed. "We're gonna go, maybe get pizza on the way home. You coming?" she asked, more directed towards Alicia than George, sensing the beginnings of an argument between the two.

"Yeah, we'll come," Alicia agreed. "I could do with pizza, I'm gonna be in a sorry state tomorrow if I don't eat."

"Alright, let's go then."

* * *

"My head is absolutely banging," Katie whimpered from the sofa of the trio's tiny London flat.

"I'm not surprised," Angelina laughed, pouring herself a strong black coffee. "I feel like shit and all, and I wasn't half as drunk as you last night."

"Give me some coffee." Angelina passed her a mug. "Thank God I don't have work today."

"You can say that again," Angelina agreed. "Coach would go sick at me if I turned up to training like this. He hasn't given us a day off in weeks though, so a proper lazy hangover is the least I deserve." She popped bread into the toaster. "Are Alicia and George not up?"

"Alicia's not, George left already," Katie grimaced.

"What is up with those two?"

"Us two?" Alicia appeared in her bedroom doorway, hair a mess and dressed only in a massive t-shirt. "Can't say I know." She wandered over to the kitchenette and poured herself a coffee as well.

"Go on then, what was last night's argument _royale_?" Angelina asked. "Budge up, you," she added to Katie, taking the other side of the sofa.

"I honestly have no idea." Alicia sank into their overstuffed armchair. "Apparently I looked at some other bloke the wrong way. Like his eyes weren't glued to Lavender Brown's ass all night or anything."

"The usual then," Katie muttered.

"Genuinely, I don't know where he gets from." Alicia sighed.

"Is that why he left? Didn't manage to make up?"

"Please, I heard them 'making up' plenty through the wall last night," Angelina laughed.

Alicia blushed. "He said he was supposed to get breakfast with Fred. And we need a bigger flat."

"Or one with thicker walls," Angelina teased her. "Why didn't Fred come with us last night anyway?"

"You wish," Katie said. "Then you two could have played your favorite game: awkward sexual tension, everyone wondering will they or won't they, a cheeky kiss, and nothing more," she laughed. "Leaving me to be Billy-no-mates, and probably waking up with Dean Thomas in my bed."

Alicia nearly spit out her coffee. "You what?"

"He kept following me," Katie told her. "He was absolutely off his face. I think he tried to grab my arse at one point. My knight in shining armor had to save me."

"Knight in shining armor, slightly-less-drunk friend in a mini skirt, same thing really," Angelina grinned.

"You know what I get like when you two are off on your romantic conquests with Fabio and Giorgio Weasley," Katie said. "I get—"

"Slutty?" Alicia raised an eyebrow.

Katie swatted at her. "How un-progressive of you, Spinnet. I was gonna say lonely."

"Sorry, couldn't help it," Alicia giggled.

"Katherine Bell,"

"First lady of the perpetually single,"

"Queen of the bad first date." The three all laughed. Katie's dating track record in the time they had known each other had been nothing short of abysmal. It had become a running joke among the trio by their fifth and sixth years at Hogwarts, but Angelina and Alicia would always be there to pick up the pieces if something went seriously wrong.

"I mean Dean is well fit," Angelina offered as consolation. "I would."

"Yes, but crucially Dean didn't know his arse from a hole in the ground last night." Katie sighed. "Just once I'd like a man to be attracted to me without the aid of ten rounds of firewhiskey."

"I've decided," Alicia said, sitting up straight. "That we are going to set you up with someone."

"Yes!" Angelina agreed, clapping her hands together.

Katie just rolled her eyes. "Don't act like this is the first time you two have had this idea. You try this multiple times a year, every year, and it's always a disaster. Your matchmaking skills are shocking."

"It has not always been a disaster," Alicia protested.

Katie grinned. "Is that so? Fourth year, Eric Corner. Had my first kiss courtesy of him trying to shove his tongue down my throat, which was exactly the opposite of what I wanted. Fifth year, Yule Ball, that Durmstrang boy you swore up and down would be perfect for me. What was his name, Vladik? Barely spoke to me."

"Hey, that's not fair," Alicia interrupted her. "You didn't give him a chance, you were too gutted Cedric didn't ask you."

"Whatever," Katie laughed. "Sixth year, Miles fucking Bletchley? I mean _how could you?_ "

"Okay," Angelina said. "So maybe we haven't had the best judgment in the past…"

"Not to _mention,_ " Katie added, "that time you, Alicia, had the brilliant idea to set me up on a blind date with Fred of all people. "You left us all these little clues like 'you played Quidditch together.' I showed up at the restaurant." She shook her head. "He was disappointed I wasn't Angelina. And I was gutted because I thought it might be…" she trailed off. "Never mind."

"Oliver," Angelina said softly.

"I felt like an absolute twat after that," Alicia said. "I'm sorry, Katie."

"It's alright," Katie told her. "Didn't meant to bring the mood down. Point is," she laughed, "you're not very good at this."

"Okay fair enough, we've been shit at it in the past," Angelina smiled. " _But_ I think I've got the perfect person this time. Alicia?"

"I think we're on the same page," Alicia said. "He's _really_ nice, Kates."

Katie looked back and forth between her friends. She already knew what they were thinking. The two might have been a year older than her at school, but she had always been able to read them like a book.

"Don't even," she told them. "I am not going on a date with Lee. No way. Not happening. No."

* * *

"So, Miss Katherine, what made you want to come on a date with me?" Lee Jordan beamed a cheeky smile at her across the pub table. "My irresistible wit? Stunning physique? Deadly charm?"

"Um, yeah, sure." Katie gave him a shy smile, shifting awkwardly in her seat. "So…what have you been up to?"

"Oh you know, little of this, little of that. Still doing my radio show, helping out in the joke shop, thinking about you." He winked. "Clearly you've been thinking about me, too."

"Sorry, you what?"

"Don't stress, Bell," he laughed. "I'm only joking. I know you're not interested in dating me. I mostly agreed as a favor to Fred and George. Not that you're not lovely," he added. "But I know that Alicia and Angelina put you up to this."

Katie breathed a sigh of relief. "You honestly had me there for a second," she laughed. "I never could tell when you were joking or not."

"Part of my gift," Lee grinned. "Keep the ladies guessing. I take it you haven't been seeing anyone?"

"Have I ever?"

"Fair point. Anyway, can I get you a drink?"

"That would be lovely," Katie smiled at him. "Even if our 'date' lasted about three seconds, it would be nice to catch up. Vodka cranberry?"

"Coming right up," he gave an exaggerated bow and strolled over to the bar.

Katie had always liked Lee. Really, he was impossible not to like. He was nice, he was funny, and you had to give him credit that he treated girls well. But he had always just been a friend when they were at school. A comfortable, reliable friend.

"How are the girls, then?" Lee asked, returning to the table, two drinks in hand.

"Yeah, they're good," Katie told him. "Angelina's still playing for Falmouth and that tyrant coach of hers, but they're towards the top of the league so it's going well. Obviously Alicia and George are still together."

"Yeah, she's around the joke shop a lot."

"She's working at the Quidditch supply shop, sending off applications to broom design companies."

"Are you all still packed like sardines into that little flat?" Lee asked with a laugh.

Katie smiled. "Afraid so. Angelina's the only one who can afford the rent on a bigger place at the moment. We told her to go if she wants, but she insisted we stay together. It's sweet, really. Neither of us could have blamed her if she'd moved out."

"Fair enough. You're still interning for the Ministry, then?"

She nodded. "I'm really hoping they'll give me a full-time position soon. They've been talking about expanding the Department of Magical Games and Sports for ages, so I better be top of the list when they do."

"I bet you will be," he smiled at her. "You're a hell of a lot cleverer than I ever was, that's for sure."

"Stop it," she blushed. "I just want a proper job, really, instead of getting people tea all day. Like what you've got at the radio station."

"I'd hardly call the two to six a.m. show time 'proper,'" he laughed. "They give it to all the newbies when they first start. I'm basically everyone else's bitch when I'm there."

"Cheers to being the bitch, then," Katie raised her glass.

"To being the bitch," Lee agreed with a grin.

The pair finished their drinks and Lee jumped up to get them another. Already the vodka was beginning to go to her head, warming her body and loosening her control over her words. _I probably shouldn't drink so much,_ she noted to herself. Her weekends recently had become a blur of nights out, dancing, drunken dancefloor fumbles, and regretful hangovers. _But I'm nineteen_ , she thought, _I can be forgiven for living a little._

Lee set another drink down in front of her and they resumed chatting. The conversation flowed easily, naturally, as it always had with him. He was forever making her laugh at school, and he hadn't lost his touch now. Possibly the drink was helping things along.

Another drink, another anecdote. What was this person up to? Remember that time when? She was tipsy now, giggling in the way that she did when she had had a few.

"Do you keep in touch with Wood?"

The question suddenly felt out of place in their friendly banter. It was innocent, but it made her heart skip a beat. "Um.." her eyes fell from Lee's to the table. "No…I suppose I don't."

"Ah never, mind," Lee said, sensing a change in her mood. "I just knew Angelina absolutely thrashed him last time Falmouth played Puddlemere. There's rumors she might get a call-up for England, I heard."

Katie was grateful for the attempted change in the topic of conversation. She didn't like to think about Oliver, much less talk about him. All she knew of him now was what she saw in the tabloids or the Daily Prophet. "Yeah, things are going really well for her." She couldn't shake the lump in her throat that had appeared at the mention of his name. She finished the vodka cranberry in front of her, hoping to find solace at the bottom of the glass. "Do you want to get out of here? It's pretty late."

"Yeah, sure," Lee smiled at her and finished his drink. "I'll walk you home."

Katie grabbed her coat as they emerged from the pub into the cool autumn air. "I just live a little ways down this way," she said, as they set off over the cobbles together. The vodka wrapped her in a warm embrace against the October night. Lee rambled to her as they walked, but she couldn't find the tipsy giggles that usually came so naturally to her. _Why did he have to bring up Oliver?_ Her mind raced, barely registering what he was saying to her. Some story about a house-elf. She could feel the loneliness creeping in on her, threatening to swallow her up once again.

"Hey are you alright?" Lee's voice pulled her back.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, just thinking. Anyway, I live there," she pointed to the building a few meters away.

"Oh, right!" he said brightly. "Well then, Miss Katherine, thank you for coming on our oh-so-steamy, oh-so-romantic date." Lee laughed. "Really, though, it's been a pleasure." He hugged her, and she was immediately grateful for the warmth of his body, the strength of his arms around her. "Goodnight, Bell."

He turned to go, but some urge prompted her to stop him.

"Lee?" He turned back. Barely registering what she was doing, Katie grabbed his collar and pulled him towards her, bringing their faces together for a kiss. His kiss was surprised, uneasy, taken aback at first, but he soon returned the favor. He wrapped his arms around her waist as his made their way to his neck. The kiss had began timidly but soon grew more passionate, as his hands gripped at her clothes and his tongue slipped inside her mouth.

Then he was pulling her into an alleyway, pushing her against the cold brick wall. His body pressed against her, warm and inviting. Their lips parted for a moment and she looked into his eyes, mischievous and sparkling, like warm chocolate. Then he was on her again, mouth hungry for hers. He brought a hand to her cheek, playing with her hair. His body was urgent, now, wanting more. As his fingers wandered downward, playing with the hem of her dress, an uneasiness began to settle into Katie. The vodka had pulled his face to hers, but the loneliness was allowing his hands under skirt.

 _I don't think I want this._ His hips pressed into hers and she could feel his arousal, asking to be taken upstairs.

 _I don't think I want this._ His lips were on her neck. He could make her feel good for the moment, for the night. She knew that, that was why she had done it. He could take away her pain for a little while, but in the morning, when he was tangled in her bedsheets and she was filled with shame, it would be back. It always came back.

"Lee," she gasped. "Lee, stop. Please."

Lee pulled away. His hand stroked her cheek. "What's wrong?"

She moved his hand from her face. "I'm sorry," she could feel tears threatening. "It's not you, I swear." A lump formed in her throat. "I don't…I don't know why I did this. It was a mistake."

For a moment he looked crestfallen, and she was scared he would be angry. A traitorous tear welled up. "Hey," he said softly. "It's alright."

"It's not."

"Don't feel bad," he smiled at her. "Bit of drink, bit of flirting, mistakes happen." He touched her shoulder. "I won't hold it against ya if you won't hold it against me."

"I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing to me, Bell," he grinned. _He always treated girls well._ "I still had a nice time. Get up to bed safely, okay? I'll catch you around." He patted her shoulder again, and was gone.

* * *

"How did it go?" Alicia's voice was bright and excited from the sofa where she cuddled with George. "Was it fun?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Kates?" Alicia asked. She turned to look over her shoulder, but the blonde girl had already disappeared into her room, shutting the door roughly behind her.

"I'm gonna guess 'not well,'" George said.

"Do you think I should go see if she's okay?"

"I'm sure she's alright," George said, pulling her closer. "He probably said something daft and offended her. Bloody idiot."

"Maybe, I'm sure you're right." Alicia sighed. So much for bettering her and Angelina's matchmaking record. "Right you," she kissed him on the cheek, "what are you doing tomorrow night? Fancy going for dinner? We've not really been on a date night in ages."

"Can't," he shook his head. "Going to the Quidditch match with Fred and Charlie."

"What, again?"

"Charlie's got season tickets, Al, we've got to get our money's worth."

"Yeah, I know." She tried not to let her disappointment show. Things had been better since their row on the weekend. They always made up quickly, but it seemed like the fights were coming more frequently recently. Maybe they'd hit a rough patch, a three-year itch of some description. That was normal, right?

"Hey," George said, kissing her forehead, "I'll make it up to you, alright? Come 'round Friday night. I'll make us a romantic meal."

Alicia giggled, "What and set the flat on fire again? Fred will have you this time."

"Nah," George waved his hand. "I'm getting better, I promise. Been watching some muggle bloke named Gordon. He's an angry bastard but his food looks proper nice. Amazing how they can do that without magic."

She had to laugh at the idea of George watching muggle cooking videos. The last time he had tried to make a romantic dinner for the two of them, he'd managed flames shooting out of the oven and a roast that was burned to a crisp. The 'meal' ended up consisting of a bag of crisps, some chocolate cake, and copious amounts of wine. Still, the effort was sweet, and she'd thoroughly rewarded him after.

"Well then, Chef Gordon, Friday it is." She playfully kissed his neck. "Looking forward to it." Alicia leaned into George's shoulder. "Can you stay tonight?"

He shook his head. "I'm opening in the morning. Probably stayed too late anyway. I really need to be off home, actually." He moved his arm from around her shoulders and stood. Alicia sighed. The memory of the last time he'd cooked for them was one of their best. It had been such a happy, carefree, playful evening, and the memory of that night had woken up her body. She wished he would stay with her.

"I'll come by the shop if I can," she said, hugging him. "If I don't see you, have fun at the match."

He kissed her gently and disappeared out the door.

Alicia retreated to her bedroom, more than a little disappointed. Her body ached for attention. _Just once,_ she thought, _it would be nice to have some passion that didn't need a fight before it._ The sex with George was good. At least, she thought. She didn't have any other frame of reference. George had been her first and would likely be her only. But it seemed now, more than ever, that their most passionate moments were always preceded by an all-out row.

She sighed, changing into a t-shirt and slipping under her covers. _This is just a phase._ Or she hoped it was. Despite their rough patch, she knew George Weasley was the man she was going to marry. If they could make it through this, they would be just fine.


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

"Welcome madam, to Chez Georges, may I take your coat?" George gave an exaggerated bow as Alicia stepped through the door. She giggled as he removed her jacket and draped it over the back of the sofa. "Please, sit down." He pulled out a chair at the dining room table, which featured two place settings and a hazardous amount of candles. The success of the joke shop meant the twins could afford a far bigger, and far nicer flat than she could.

She sat. "George, you didn't need to do all of this."

"Nonsense," he said, kissing her hand with a grandiose flourish. "Would the lady care for some _vino_?"

"Sure."

He retreated momentarily to the kitchen before returning with the first of what she was sure would be many bottles. He filled both wine glasses before sitting across from her. "What do you think?" he asked earnestly, gesturing around the room. The normal chaos of the twins' living quarters had been tamed, the lights dimmed, and she spied fresh flowers in a corner.

"It's lovely." She smiled at him, reaching across the table to take his hand. "And, unless I'm mistaken, I don't smell anything burning."

George grinned, clearly pleased with himself. "Well I have bought a ready-made backup dinner in case this goes tits-up, but I think it's coming along well so far."

Alicia took a long drink of the sweet red wine. "I bet it is. I can't wait to taste it. The wine's nice too."

"Okay good, that's the first test. You know I don't know anything about wine except white and red," George laughed. "Definitely not pairings and all that."

"How was the match?"

"Yeah, it was good. Cannons lost, as always. Charlie nearly got in a fight with one of the Wimbourne supporters, but it was good banter." He paused. "He told us he's thinking of asking Natalia to marry him."

Alicia took another sip of wine. "That's great!" she said. She'd met Natalia at the Weasleys' last Christmas dinner. A lovely woman: Romanian, beautiful, and even more nuts about dragons than Charlie was. "Did he say when?"

George shook his head. "Sometime soon. But he wanted to ask all of us what we thought. Bill obviously told him to go for it so that he doesn't have to be the only old married man," he laughed. "Can you believe he asked Percy before he asked us?"

Alicia smiled. "What did Percy say?"

"Something twatty probably."

She snorted as he continue. "But Mum and Dad love Natalia. Even Ginny likes her, which is saying something. Not that Ginny doesn't like you," he added hurriedly. "But she wasn't too keen on Fleur."

"I remember you saying that," she mused. "I think it's great."

"Me too," George agreed. "Now, don't move a muscle, I think dinner's ready and I don't want anything to jinx it. One false move and the whole place is gonna blow." He winked and disappeared to the kitchen again.

He returned moments later bearing two plates piled high with succulent lamb, garlic mashed potatoes, and roast vegetables. Alicia's mouth watered at the smell as he set the plate down in front of her and topped up her wine. It looked incredible.

"George, you did all of this?"

"I told you I'd been practicing," he grinned.

Before he could return to seat, she grabbed his face and gave him a passionate kiss. It was moments like these, when he really tried, that she felt certain her apprehensions were nothing more than silly doubts. George loved her. She knew that, and she loved him. All she needed from time to time was a gentle reminder.

* * *

"Right, you've been sulking in your room for the past two days. We're going out." Angelina's lithe figure appeared in Katie's doorway, freshly showered from Quidditch training.

Katie looked up from where she was flopped on her bed. Other than going to work, she'd shut herself away since Wednesday's disastrous date. "I don't want to."

"Come on, Kate, Fred's asked us to go for a drink. Apparently George told him in no uncertain terms not to be in the flat tonight. Especially after what happened last time. Lee won't be there, so whatever happened on your date doesn't matter. Dean might," Angelina told her, as if that would tempt her.

"I don't want to go for a drink, I don't want to see Fred, and I definitely could not be less interested in Dean at the moment," Katie said. "You go. I want to be alone."

Rather than leaving, however, Angelina came and plopped herself down on the bed beside her friend. "I'm not going if you're not," she said. "Tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing, I don't know. It's stupid."

"It's not. Not if you're upset about it."

"Just…the date was bad, okay? That's all."

"Katie," Angelina said, looking her squarely in the face. "You have been on dates from hell and never been down about it before. Not like this. _Even,_ " she emphasized, "when we set you up with Miles Bletchley."

Katie gave her a weak smile. "Ange," she shook her head. "I really fucked up. My head's in a really weird place. I don't know what to do."

Angelina wrapped her in a big hug. "Right," she said. "This calls for Dr. Johnson's special medicine. One prescription for wine and ice cream. Red or white?"

"You don't have to stay, go have fun with Fred."

"Don't be thick."

"White, please." Katie smiled.

"Right, don't go anywhere. I'll run out and grab some and tell Fred I'm not coming. This is more important."

* * *

"George, that was honestly amazing," Alicia said, leaning back in her chair. "And I couldn't eat another bite."

"All credit to that Gordon fellow," George grinned.

The conversation had admittedly not flowed quite as freely as the wine, but that didn't matter. Alicia told herself they were comfortable silences, small punctuation in a pleasant evening. George cleared her plate, and she could hear the scrubbing brush begin to work of its own accord in the kitchen.

George sat down and took another large swig of wine. The first bottle was gone, and the second well underway. Alicia's face was hot, her body relaxed, her mind clouded with pleasant nothings. "I really appreciate this," she murmured. "It's really great to spend time with just the two us."

"Ah," George nodded. "Does that mean I should cancel the stripper?"

Alicia giggled. "Depends, is it Fred?"

"No," George said, pretending to be indignant. "Fred would never excel in a profession such as that. It's Percy, obviously."

Alicia snorted. "Then by all means, bring him on!" she laughed. "My body is ready." This was what she loved, not their stilted dinner conversation. Whatever they were going through, he could always make her laugh. That would always be the most attractive thing about him.

"Is it?" he asked, from across the table. His hazel eyes looked at her with a deep warmth and not-so-subtle flick to the low-cut neckline of her dress.

"It might be," she replied, voice low. A jolt of anticipation ran through her.

"Ready for what?"

"I think you know." It had been quite a while since she had wanted him like this.

George grinned. "Dessert." He said definitively.

 _Dessert?_ He pushed out his chair and walked to the kitchen again, sexual tension broken. _Never mind_ , Alicia thought, _he's just excited about the meal. It's sweet. Plenty of time for that later._ He popped his head out. "I hope you're in the mood for chocolate."

* * *

"Now." Angelina settled back on Katie's bed with two large glasses of white wine. "Tell me everything."

"It was going really well," Katie sighed. "Not as a date, or anything. We both acknowledged it was really just a friendly catch-up in the first few minutes. It was a good chat, sort of just reminiscing, having a few drinks."

"Okay, so that's good?"

"But then we left and he walked me home. I guess maybe we'd been flirting a little bit. But I don't know what came over me. I just grabbed him and—"

"Oh, Katie, you _didn't_ —"

"I didn't sleep with him," Katie told her. She flushed. "I did think about it, though. But he was kissing me and grabbing me and I just panicked. I made him stop, made him go home. He was dead nice about it but I felt awful. I don't know why I did it in the first place."

"And you're embarrassed?" Angelina asked. "Because if that's the case, don't be. You had a few drinks, it happens to everyone."

"That wasn't why, though," Katie shook her head. "I didn't…want him, really. I just wanted someone, you know?"

Angelina nodded. It was far from the first time Katie had done something like this, but she hadn't been as upset about it any of the previous times. It wasn't healthy, they all knew that, but who hadn't been guilty at some point? _Why is this time so different?_ Angelina wondered. "Is that why you're so upset? You feel like you used him?"

"Part of it," Katie admitted. "I mean Lee is honestly such a nice guy, he didn't deserve that. But it's also…I don't know. Never mind."

"No, tell me. What?"

"It was because he asked me about Oliver."

Angelina drew in a breath. "What did he say?"

"That's the thing." Katie shook her head. "Nothing, really. It was completely innocent, just asked me if I still talked to him, and that was enough. I just got this lump in my throat thinking about him."

"Kate," Angelina hugged her. "I had no idea it still upset you that much."

"It's stupid." Katie took a big sip of wine. "I haven't even spoken to him since I left school. It's sort of pathetic, really."

"It is not," Angelina told her. "You really liked him, Kate. It's not stupid."

"You don't get it," Katie said sadly. "I _loved_ him, Angelina. Loved him. All the dates, the complaining about being single, the crush on Cedric, none of it was really what I wanted. From the word 'go,' I never wanted anyone but him. I still don't."

There was a moment of silence as Angelina collected her thoughts. She and Alicia knew Katie fancied him, but they always figured it was just a crush. Who among them hadn't fancied Oliver at least a tiny bit at some point? Even Angelina remembered being about twelve and thinking he was the cutest boy she'd ever seen. As long as they'd known her, Katie's romantic whims seemed to come and go like the breeze. Oliver was different, Angelina knew. She had been able to see it in the way Katie talked about him. They'd teased her about Oliver. At one point they'd been absolutely adamant that it was a Thing That Should Happen, but they never managed to make it so. Even after he left Hogwarts the flame simmered as they wrote to each other constantly, but nothing ever materialized.

But _loved._ That wasn't a word Angelina had ever heard Katie use about anyone. Especially after everything that had happened, she didn't think he deserved it. Katie had stopped speaking to him after a tabloid picture had emerged of him engaged in a less-than-innocent kiss with her older sister at a party. Angelina refilled their wine glasses. Her heart was breaking on her friend's behalf.

"I mean," Katie continued. "What sort of saddo is still in love with someone two years later?"

"He doesn't deserve your love, Katie." Angelina's voice was soft but firm. "And you are not a 'saddo.'"

"I am, though. I can't even hear his name without getting emotional and lonely and doing daft things like snogging Lee Jordan. I can't do it, Ange. No one looks at me the way he did, or makes me laugh the way he did. He was the one and he may as well have slapped me across the face."

"He's not the one," Angelina replied matter-of-factly. "Because if he was, he would have realized you were the best thing he could have hoped for. And as it so happens, he's an idiot who didn't see that. Someone will come along for you, you'll see."

"You sound like my mother."

"Then your mother's a smart woman," Angelina laughed. "You are way too beautiful and smart and talented to become and old spinster like me."

"Shut up," Katie said, smiling. "You're neither old, nor a spinster. The minute you and Fred accept that you're made for one another, there will be wedding bells."

"Give over."

"I'm serious." There was a pause. "So where's Dr. Johnson's ice cream then?"

"I'll get it from the freezer," Angelina grinned. She stood and went to the door. "It will be alright, Kate, I promise. Oliver Wood can go fuck himself."

* * *

Alicia sighed and rolled over. Though the space between George's cool linen sheets was a familiar one, she couldn't sleep. The night had been lovely up the point they retreated to his room. Alicia's mind had been filled with delicious details of all the ways she wanted to pay him back for dinner, as she had the first time he'd attempted a romantic meal. That night had been so passionate, so pleasurable. As soon as they'd finished eating she'd crawled under the table to thank him. His hands had peeled off her clothes and hers, his. He'd had her on the sofa, on the kitchen counter, and even on the floor in front of the door, all sweat and moans and breathlessness. They'd been so consumed by each other's bodies that they had barely noticed when Fred got home and nearly tripped over them before they moved to George's room for rounds two and three.

Tonight, however, had been a completely different story. Rather than the raunchy wild passion she'd envisioned, and indeed attempted, George only gave her a half-hearted fumble before falling asleep. She told herself that it was alright, he was probably tired from work and the cooking, but she couldn't help but be disappointed. The problem, really, was that recently the majority of their sexual encounters seemed to be this sort of lazy and dispassionate love-making. The only time they really seemed to go at it was when they'd been fighting—lust fueled by anger, rather than love. The past few months, Alicia had caught herself wondering if George really wanted her. If he was even still attracted to her. He didn't seem to want her the way he had, that was certain. Sometimes she wondered if she wanted him the same, or if she wanted to relive their previous passions.

She rolled over again, facing him. He hadn't even kissed her goodnight before dropping off to sleep. Her body still ached for his love, and her heart had begun to ache for it too. At the end of the day, it wasn't about the sex. Not really. It was about that intangible feeling she felt was missing more and more from their relationship. And yet still, here, bathed in the moonlight peeking in through his curtains, she felt that he was beautiful. She reached over and kissed his sleeping forehead. She would find a way to bring them back, she decided. She had to.


End file.
